Peppermint || Shoto Todoroki x Reader

Chapter 23

'How did this happen?' Shoto murmured, causing Y/N to look up from the little braids that she was twisting his hair into. 'I pushed her out of my mind. I didn't even think about her.' He shut his eyes, relishing the feeling of the slight tug as Y/N braided another strand of hair into her creation. 'Well... I haven't exactly had time to think about my late mother too.' Y/N replied. 'Now that I think about it, I might've just tried to forget everything so that it would be easier and less painful for me, but it's just made things worse. Maybe that's what's going through your mind.' She hummed, tugging gently at another piece of hair. 'Makes sense.' Shoto muttered, closing his fist.

Bang! Just as Y/N and Shoto were both lost in thought, the door slammed open. Shoto, who was previously staring at his left palm, and Y/N, who was still busy putting little braids in Shoto's hair, both looked up. Y/N cocked her head at the blond teen, studying him rather curiously before returning to the 'task' she had at hand. 'What are you both doing here? This is my space- Uh... crap! This is waiting room number two?'

Shoto stared at him for a few seconds and turned back. Because he was used to being in the spotlight, Bakugo was severely ticked off at the fact that he had just been ignored. 'Alright, fine. So I may have walked into the wrong room. But that doesn't mean I'm not going to be at the top of my game, you got that?' He demanded, slamming a hand onto the table in an attempt to scare Y/N and Shoto. 'Come at me with all you've got, Icyhot, Aquagirl!'

'Midoriya.' Shoto replied, confusing Bakugo. 'Huh?'

'He said the same thing.' Shoto explained. 'That fool. Instead of focusing on winning his match, he focused on trying to break my walls.' 'Well, you can tell him that someone else beat him to it a long time ago.' Y/N chimed in, pulling at another lock of scarlet on Shoto's head. A small, inconspicuous smile made its way onto his face. 'You guys were childhood friends, right? Was he like that when you were kids? So helpful.'

'What does he have to do with any of this?' He yelled, kicking the desk away. 'It's all between you, me and that brat standing over you now! Focus on the match. That's the only thing I give a damn about. Whatever your family problems are, whatever you're feeling. None of that crap matters, just make sure you don't hold back. Use your flames on me. I want everyone to know I beat you at your best.'

'Wow. Egotistical much?' Y/N remarked, restoring the fallen table and chairs to their original positions.

Bakugo's eyes flared. 'What did you say?'

'I said that you were egotistical for making that claim.' The brunette replied calmly, picking up a chair. 'You better not hold back too.' Bakugo snarled, jabbing a finger in Y/N's direction. 'What do you mean?' She asked curiously, walking up to the blond. 'I never hold back when it comes to a fight unless I have to.'

'By the way,' She called after Bakugo as he stormed out of the room, 'The only brat here was you.' With that, the door slammed shut.

...

'Welcome to the first match of the final round of the Sport's Festival! In just three more matches, we'll see which first year comes out on top! And it all comes down to them, folks. From the Hero Course, Shoto Todoroki! Versus, his classmate Katsuki Bakugo! Now, begin!'

Immediately, Shoto slammed his right hand onto the cement floor, creating his second-biggest wave of ice today. 'Ugh.. damn it!' Bakugo yelled, punching at the icicles furiously. 'Todoroki starts with a crazy ice blast! Bakugo seems to be completely buried! Is it possible we've already got a winner down there?'

The floor trembled. 'Bakugo's blasting his way out.' Y/N grimaced, slumping onto the table. 'Why is it always Sho's matches that are the most violent?'